Given the following sentences:
- It is better to stay here.
- It is best to stay here.
Are both sentences correct? If yes, is there any difference of meaning between them?
I've always been taught the first one as it sounds like a comparative "It is better to stay here (than to go away)"
I've also been taught that "the best" is a superlative, but I can't understand "best" in sentence 2. as there is no "the" in front of it.
Best Answer
To answer your first question, yes, both sentences are correct. However, they do have different meanings.
The first sentence means what you think it means:
Note that it could also mean this:
It really just depends upon context. The second sentence, as you said, contains a superlative, "best." In English, unlike in some other languages such as Spanish, the superlative does not require a definite article. In fact, it would actually sound weird to say, "It is the best to stay here."
The second sentence means this:
That looks a lot like my second meaning for the first sentence, but here's the difference: "someplace else" in the first sentence refers to a specific other place, while "anywhere else" means any place where you could feasibly stay.